POCATELLO, Ida. – The Montana State University Billings men's and women's track & field teams competed in their final meets before the GNAC Indoor Championships Friday, taking part in the Stacy Dragila Open hosted by Idaho State University.
 
The Yellowjackets showed they were peaking at the right time ahead of the conference championships, with a number of athletes collecting quality finishes, along with season and personal bests in Pocatello. These finishes included one first place mark, with Wyatt May pacing the field in the men's 3000m to finish in first with a time of 9:17.79. It was the junior's first ever first place finish in the 3000m, where he defeated his closest competitor by nearly six seconds.
 
A pair of other MSUB men collected third place finishes at the meet. Lennon Davis was third in the 800m, finishing in a time of 2:03.76, while Payton Kokot jumped 6.53m (21' 5.25") to finish third in the long jump. Kokot also finished sixth in the high jump, clearing 1.78m (5' 10").
 
In the sprints, Jaycee Herbert paced MSUB's competitors in the 60m, running a 6.99 time in the prelims to qualify for the finals. Herbert would improve his mark in the finals to 6.94, maintaining a fourth-place finish and tying both his season and career best set earlier this season at the Bobcat Preview. Herbert would also join Brock Grossman, Benjamin Ralston, and Kaleb Scott on the 'Jackets 4x400 relay team, who finished with a season best time of 3:33.15. Behind Herbert, freshman Ryen Sanders and Aidan Johnson set PRs in the 60m with times of 7.25 and 7.45, with the duo also setting PRs in the 200m with times of 23.42 and 24.52 respectively. Sanders would finish as the Yellowjackets top finisher in the event, with his time good enough for 11^th place. Tyler Grenier would also set his season best in the 200m, finishing in 13^th with a time of 23.89.
 
Alongside Kokot in the jumps, Favor Okere continued a standout indoor season in high jump with his mark of 1.88m (6' 2"), collecting a fourth-place finish, while also finishing in sixth place for the long jump with a leap of 6.26m (20' 6.5"). His brother, Goodness Okere, would set his PR in the high jump with a mark of 1.73m (5' 8"), and would finish fourth in the triple jump with a mark of 12.21m (40" 0.75"). In the throws, Cort Sandefur would finish in fourth place in the weight throw with a mark of 16.01m (52' 6.50"). He would be immediately followed by Isaac Perkins, who finished fifth with a throw of 15.40m (50' 6.25") and Kody Biggs, who set a big PR with a throw of 15.24m (50' 0"). Perkins would finish as the 'Jackets top finisher in the shot put with a mark of 14.00m (45' 11.25"), while freshman Kody Cooper would collect his PR in the event with a throw of 11.87m (38' 11.5").
 
The Yellowjacket women would finish with a pair of top three finishes at the meet. Continuing her impressive winter, Hannah Cooper would finish third in the weight throw, collecting a mark of 16.40m (53' 9.75"). The school record holder in the event, Cooper's season best mark remains the top mark in the GNAC this season heading into the GNAC Indoor Championships. Cooper also landed a season best mark in the shot put with a throw of 11.86m (38' 11"), finishing in tenth. Also collecting a third-place finish was Kyanna Jarvis, who would set a PR in the high jump with a leap of 1.58m (5' 2.25") Jarvis's mark would enter a tie for third in program history, and was the sixth best jump in the GNAC this season. Jarvis would also finish 12^th in the long jump with a mark of 4.47m (14' 8").
 
In the sprints, Mya Richardson would highlight with a season best mark in the 200m with a run of 26.32 to finish in seventh place, while her time of 7.99 in the 60m prelims was good enough for 12^th place. Bella Klein grabbed a season best finish in the 400m with her time of 1:00.77, which ranks second quickest on MSUB's top ten lists. Madeline Severson would collect a fourth-place finish in the 400m with a time of 2:20.54, while Emma Weaver earned a season best time of 2:38.07. Klein, Richardson, and Severson would also joined Katie Sheridan on the 4x400 relay team, whose 4:10.15 finish was a season best.
 
Cecily Eagleton put up a season best mark in the 3000m, with her time of 11:19.52 finishing fourth at the Stacy Dragila Open. Severson would continue her run of solid finishes on the day with a sixth-place finish in the high jump, setting her season best with a leap if 1.53m (5' 0.25"). Alyssa Sanchez would finish fifth in the triple jump with a leap of 9.97m (32' 8.50"). And in the throwing events for MSUB, Jaida Green would finish ninth in the weight throw with a mark of 14.94m (49' 0.25"), and 11^th place in the shot put with an effort of 11.45m (37' 6.75"). Isa Caballero would collect a PR in the weight throw as well, achieving a mark of 12.49m (40' 11.75").
 
THE BUZZ: Herbert was selected as Intermountain Health Athlete of the Meet for the men, while Jarvis was selected for the women.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjacket will conclude their indoor season on February 17-18, when the team heads to The Podium in Spokane, Washington to compete in the 2025 GNAC Indoor Track & Field Championships. Championship information can be found online here, while live coverage of all Yellowjacket meets can be found online here for the men's team, and here for the women's team.